Kyrgios says tennis integrity ‘awful’ after doping scandals

AFP | Brisbane

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Nick Kyrgios lashed out yesterday at what he believes is the lenient treatment of world tennis number one Italian Jannik Sinner for a failed drug test and said integrity in the sport was “awful”. Sinner twice tested positive for the banned steroid clostebol in March. However, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted his argument that the steroid entered his system due to contamination from his physiotherapist and opted not to suspend him.

The World Anti-Dop - ing Agency (WADA) subsequently appealed the decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, with a verdict pending. Kyrgios has been scathing about the ITIA decision in the past and didn’t hold back in a press conference ahead of his return to the game at the Brisbane International after an 18-month injury lay-off. “Tennis integrity right now, and everyone knows it, but no one wants to speak about it -- it’s awful,” said the Australian. “It’s awful and it’s not okay.

I know that people don’t like it when I just speak out about things, be honest about things. “For a kid that grew up playing tennis, I enjoyed the competition, I enjoyed playing. “I can get emotional, I can throw a racquet, but that’s nothing compared to cheating and taking performance-enhancing drugs.” Asked whether he was accusing Sinner of cheating, Kyrgios told journalists to look at the facts.